48 pages • 1 hour read
Battlefield of the Mind: Winning the Battle in Your Mind
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Part 3Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of child sexual abuse and mental illness.
Part 3: “Wilderness Mentalities”
Part 3, Chapter 16 Summary and Analysis: “‘My Future Is Determined by My Past and My Present’—Wilderness Mentality #1”
In Part 3, Meyer addresses certain common misconceptions in the Christian life, which she calls “wilderness mentalities.” The term is an allusion to the biblical account of the Israelites in their wilderness wanderings between Egypt and the Promised Land.
The first “wilderness mentality” Meyer identifies is a deterministic mindset wherein a person sees the future as limited by the sins and traumas of the past and present. Meyer refers to her own childhood trauma and abuse to show that it is possible to untether one’s future from one’s past: “I say to you boldly, your future is not determined by your past or your present” (192).
Meyer points toward the biblical story of the Israelites scouting out the Promised Land after their exodus from Egypt and the way that their complaining, negative mentality determined what they thought would be possible. Believers should instead embrace a positive sensibility, trusting God to open up new possibilities for the future. One should fix one’s eyes on God, giving thanks for his past provision and trusting him to provide even greater things in the future.
Though Meyer references research indicating how early childhood trauma, in particular, shapes personality in lasting ways, the chapter presents healing as a simple shift from closed- to open-mindedness regarding the future.
